Vienna  - Vienna airport reported a drop in profits of 44 per cent in the quarter ending in June, as lower passenger numbers and a costly infrastructure expansion project took its toll on results.

Net profit for the second quarter stood at 17 million euros (23 million dollars), while operating profit plummeted by 46 per cent year-on-year to 22 million euros.

The airport, Flughafen Wien AG, collected revenues worth 123 million euros in the second quarter, down from 144 million euros in the same period last year.

In the first half of this year, traffic fell by 12.7 per cent, with 8.43 million travellers using the airport - which is a key hub for Central and Eastern Europe.

There was a sharp decrease of 18.9 per cent in traffic to that region in that period. The only segment that improved was travel to the Middle East, with a plus of 1.6 per cent.

For the year, Flughafen Wien expects passenger numbers to drop by 9 per cent.

At the end of June, the airport stopped construction of a new terminal after projected construction costs rocketed to 830 million euros - more than double the original estimate.

Vienna's international hub is currently trying to cut construction costs through renegotiations of contracts and new tenders.

The airport is also experiencing trouble in its low-cost carrier segment, which makes up nearly 24 per cent of traffic.

After management banned Slovak-based budget airline SkyEurope from using the airport in mid-August over outstanding fees, it reported Thursday that the carrier had issued no new proposal for payments yet. (dpa)